WVU women advance to Big East semifinal

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HARTFORD, CT. -- The motto of one-and-done tournament basketball for every team is "survive and advance," and the West Virginia women did exactly that this afternoon against Georgetown in a Big East Women's Tournament quarterfinal at the XL Center.

And given how this game played out, the emphasis has to be on the word survive.

That's because the Mountaineers and Hoyas put forth one of the most physical games in recent memory and very few possessions ended without someone from one team or the other bouncing off the floor and the most valuable players may have been the trainers.

In the end, the No. 5 seed Mountaineers outlasted and upset the No. 4 seed - and 12th ranked - Hoyas, 39-32, to advance to the semifinal round Monday night against the winner of today's later game between No. 1 seed Notre Dame (28-2) and No. 8 seed DePaul (22-9).

The key to this game was simple to see -- West Virginia was tougher and more physical than Georgetown and beat the Hoyas at their own game.

That tone was set in the first half when both teams battled -- and officials let them play -- tooth and nail for every inch of the court, and while there wasn't much actual basketball skill on display, it was a study in survival of the fittest as the Mountaineers came out of the half with a 15-12 lead.

Yes, that was indeed the half-time score -- 15-12 -- as the two teams combined to make only 10-of-64 shots and were 1-of-13 from the 3-point line.

The game loosened up some in the second half, and West Virginia made a 7-0 run -- capped by a 3-pointer by Taylor Palmer with 9:52 to play that gave the Mountaineers a 28-18 cushion.

In this game, a ten-point lead was like a 30-point lead in most other games as both teams' defenses refused to give in even a little and from that point the Mountaineers were able to just grind away and hold on for the win -- even though they missed seven consecutive free throws in the final minute when they were trying to put the game away.

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